Housing, Indicators, Sustainable development, Sustainability indicators, Urban sustainability indicators, Housing and the environment, Quality of life,

Globalisation and its consequent economic restructuring have implications at the local level. At the same time historical paths and traditions, embeddedness of local actors and institutional factors have all become significant in explaining different neighbourhood trajectories and, particularly, the patterns of urban segregation that emerge following economic restructuring. Given the unusual nature of the Spanish housing model and the massive arrival of immigrants since the end of the 1990s, this paper explores the urban effects of immigration settlement patterns in the context of a market dominated by owner-occupation and a unique framework of social housing policy. Purchase of permanent residences is an essential step in the housing careers of the Spanish population but also for immigrants to Spain. The paper analyses the extent to which this influences urban segregation patterns and neighbourhood characteristics in Spain. Barcelona is referred to as a case study, to illustrate the influence of the existing housing system in the process of the accommodation of newcomers. Copyright (c) 2009 by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG.

Spain is usually chosen as an example of an unbalanced picture among tenures. The owner-occupied sector has been growing since the 1950s while the rental sector has become smaller. Surprisingly, other European countries are at present following the same pattern, but mostly we also see an important function for social housing. Taking into account that public housing, built by public developers, is almost negligible and that government housing policy programmes basically stimulate ownership, the 'social housing' concept lacks an adequate definition in Spanish housing policy. In this sense, the encouragement of the rental sector through public policy should provide an alternative for low-income families. Despite different cultural housing backgrounds, the emergence of a reliable rental sector in Spain appears to be the most promising strategy for solving current housing problems. The aim of the paper is twofold. On the one hand, it analyses the evolution of the rental sector through recent decades, stressing how different central government regulations have affected the tenure structure in Spain. On the other, it considers the rental sector as a potential instrument for authorities to meet the housing needs of low-income families. Housing policy still plays a crucial role in offering the opportunity for certain groups to access a suitable house. What can be called the 'European shift' to the market can cause irreparable damage to those families that have benefited from former, direct or indirect, public means.

Approaches to inner-city regeneration in Britain, Europe and North America have evolved since the 1980s to reflect greater priority on diversity of activities and more sustainable development. This has in turn posed new challenges for leadership in place-shaping and highlighted the need for different sets of skills, aptitudes and values than those which prevailed in the 1980s and 90s. This article examines how planners and policy-makers in Birmingham and Barcelona have tackled these challenges in the creation of new urban districts. It shows that while top-down approaches still prevail in both cities, leaders in Barcelona have been able to adapt more readily to the demands of a new era. In Birmingham, policymakers have struggled to break free of the more traditional approach that suited the city well in the 1980s but is less conducive to sustainable place-making challenges in the present day. This divergence of experience can be explained by several factors, most notably the institutional framework within which leaders operate and the prevailing planning culture rooted in the cities' pasts. The findings point to the need for this cultural influence to be taken into account in the forging of new leadership approaches in urban regeneration contexts.